约瑟夫•奥康纳（Joseph O'Connor）：

1963年出生于爱尔兰首府都柏林，为家中长子，其妹为知名歌手西尼德• 奥康纳。已著有18部文学作品，其中包括小说、随笔、剧本等多种形式。2004年推出的长篇小说《海洋之星》为他在世界范围内赢得了广泛的声誉，荣获《爱尔兰邮报》文学奖、美国图书馆协会奖、法国玛德琳·泽普特欧洲文学奖、《纽约时报》年度好书、《经济学人》年度好书，并被Vintage选入“未来的经典”书系。其后推出的《幽灵之光》《影子游戏》等著作亦好评连连，其中《影子游戏》获爱尔兰图书奖年度小说奖，并入围2019科斯塔奖决选名单，两届布克奖得主彼得• 凯里称赞道：“在世的作家中极少有人能通过如此华丽的词句，让我们切实感受过往。约瑟夫• 奥康纳是个奇迹，《影子游戏》是本非凡的杰作。”

陈超：

青年翻译家。代表译作有《奥威尔作品全集》《巨人的陨落》《海洋之星》《卑微者之歌》《飘》《且问风尘》《在路上》等。目前定居加拿大。

Thrilling and full of suspense, this is a novel of Ireland set on a New York-bound ocean liner.

In the spring of 1847, from an Ireland torn by disaster and injustice, the Star of the Sea sets sail for New York. On board are hundreds of hopeful emigrants, some brimming with optimism, many more desperate to get away and start afresh in the New World. Among them are a maidservant nursing a devastating secret; the bankrupt Lord Merridith and his family; an aspiring novelist; a writer of revolutionary ballads -- all braving the Atlantic in search of a new beginning. Each is connected more deeply than they can possibly know. Also stalking the decks is a killer, hungry for the vengeance that alone will bring absolution.

The voyage of almost four weeks will see some lives end and others begin anew, and so much time to reflect on the life left behind; passionate loves tenderly recalled, ducked responsibilities now regretted, the shocking realization of a deep relationship where once it seemed there was nothing. In this spellbinding story of tragedy and mercy, love and healing, the further the ship sails towards the Promised Land, the more her passengers seemed moored to a past which will not let them go. This is a novel that is both urgently contemporary in its preoccupations, and historically revealing. It is a gripping and compassionate tale, building with the pace of a thriller to an unforgettable conclusion.- From the Hardcover edition.